The present invention relates generally to computer backup systems and, more particularly, to a method for protecting data of a computer system having a hard drive with an operating system stored on a first partition thereof.
Computer systems commonly have a hard disk drive on which an operating system (OS) is stored. As is well known to those skilled in the art, the OS provides the necessary functionality to enable processing of basic computer routines as well as render software applications with specific OS functionality. Although the OS is designed to be robust, many times errors occur that cause the OS to stop functioning as intended. This type of problem is often referred to as a computer crash, and the computer crash can be the result of any number of causes. Such causes include, for example, computer viruses, miscommunication between programs, improper shutdowns, power surges, etc. In any event, when a crash occurs, the computer system may not be able to reboot from the resident OS.
At present, when a crash occurs, the computer user is generally required to obtain professional help to diagnose the problem and formulate a solution. Because computer users often store valuable information on their drive, users are routinely forced to endure many hours of downtime until the drive is repaired and data is recovered (assuming a prior backup was recent enough to be helpful).
In view of the foregoing, there is a need for a method that enables a computer system to remain operational from the same hard disk drive while any necessary repairs are made to the original OS.